The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill requested that they sample tissue from my inner ear and run monthly tests on my hearing. In return, they offered me guaranteed admission to Chapel Hill, or a full scholarship to any school within the UNC system.I've been severely hearing impaired for my entire life and not a single professional can tell me why and they haven't been able to either, and it's been five years since the study ended.

Well yes and no. I was getting outfitted for hearing aids for the first time since elementary school (fucking douchecanoes always making fun of me for them), and during the testing it came up that they had no actual clue why I was deaf, and my mom was like "yeah, neither did the doctors before." Then they contacted UNC to talk to some Alma Mater about doing a study, as it was kind of interesting. Three weeks later I'm in a lab at Chapel Hill getting my ears rubbed by an undergrad ENT who was fine as hell.